Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Joka-Taratala metro corridor in southwestern Kolkata on Saturday, an official said. The prime minister will first flag off West Bengal's first Vande Bharat Express from Howrah to New Jalpaiguri, connecting the state's two most important cities - Kolkata in the south and Siliguri in the north.

He will then virtually inaugurate the much-awaited Joka-Taratala stretch of the Joka-Esplanade metro project (purple line) from the Howrah station, the metro official said. Trial runs on the 6.5 km stretch are being held since mid-September and it received the mandatory Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) clearance in November.

Metro Railway General Manager Arun Arora inspected passenger amenities at different stations of the stretch on December 24. There are six stations -- Joka, Thakurpukur, Sakherbazar, Behala Chowrasta, Behala Bazar and Taratala on the route. The Indian Railways has spent Rs 2,477.25 crore for completing the 6.5 km stretch, the official said.